Revealed: 10,000 drivers caught by M6 average speed cameras

Cameras were switched on as the speed limit on the stretch heading south between junctions seven and eight was cut to 40mph - but thousands of drivers chose to ignore the restricted limit and were left facing fines.

Lanes were narrowed and the speed limit brought down between Great Barr and the M5.

The limit was slashed as a safety precaution as vehicles were guided across the carriageway by yellow markers, travelling much closer together than normal.

The average speed cameras were switched on in July, two months after the roadworks started. West Midlands Police revealed it had sent out 9,697 Notice of Intended Prosecution tickets out since then. It meant around 500 drivers were caught by the speed cameras every week.

Those who were caught out were left facing a fine or even a court appearance, depending on their driving record

Some were made to take a driving awareness course or had points added to their licence or a fine. Those who had racked up points on their licence previously ran the risk of being taken to court.

The £4.2 million bridge repairs project caused misery for motorists, with regular delays from when work started in May.

Concrete repairs were made to the bridges which carry the traffic over the Rushall canal, as well as the M5 to M6 southbound link road. That was followed by renewing the waterproofing and surfacing on the routes.

It comes as drivers are braced for another major motorway roadworks scheme due to start in the spring.

Maintenance work on the Oldbury viaduct, between junctions one and two of the M5, is due to get under way in April and is likely to last more than a year.

Great Barr councillor Jon Hunt said the figures should serve as a message to drivers to take average speed cameras seriously.

He said: "Average speed cameras are on some of our A roads now and people are getting caught. We are all having to undo our bad habits and make sure we are sticking closely to the speed limit.

"Most of these things are here to keep us safe. It might be vexing sometimes but they are a safety measure.

"People need not to see them as a challenge but to know they are there for a reason."

Councillor Hunt believes those who were caught would have been going particularly fast.

He said: "It is hard to get caught by average speed cameras. To get caught they must have been going well over the speed limit."

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